Another Swift trainee killed last night......

[BigDiesel]

and his trainer was sound asleep in the bunk......... Pathetic....


http://www.nwcn.com/statenews/washin...186f1a7d9.html

[dobry4u]

That is so sad. My condolences to the deceased driver's family. Probably out there trying to proved for his family.

Very sad.

[Rev.Vassago]

It is a matter of time before Swift goes the way of Schneider and cancels their training programs. I do wonder if those training programs will ever be reopened.

[Jimbpard]

If they dont have the "dummy newbie" to sign on with them, who will?

I would think MOST experienced drivers already know how bad of a company they are..Key words...Would think....

[dobry4u]

If they dont have the "dummy newbie" to sign on with them, who will?

I would think MOST experienced drivers already know how bad of a company they are..Key words...Would think....

I am a newbie for Swift... and not sure if I fit the "dummy" definition.

Regardless, someone has died and it is a tragedy no mater whom the driver was transporting under.

[Colts Fan]

Thank God the trainer lived. If I were him, that might be the last night I train someone. I was in a similar situation last year except I was the trainee asleep in the back and my trainer was the one who lost control and crashed. Scared the hell outta me.

[Jackrabbit379]

Sad. That's for sure.

[classicxl]

I have always felt that the trainer should be awake sitting in the passenger seat the whole time the trainee is driving. A training truck should not be used to run teams. My prayers are with this drivers family.

[BigDiesel]

I am a newbie for Swift... and not sure if I fit the "dummy" definition.

Regardless, someone has died and it is a tragedy no mater whom the driver was transporting under.

You are missing the big picture of this horrible situation........

[Double R]

I will never understand how a trainer can train a new driver from the bunk.

[dobry4u]

You are missing the big picture of this horrible situation........

Not really. I am showing some respect for the great loss of some family. The death of a driver, perhaps a father and a husband.

I don't mean to knock you about your thoughts on this Big Diesel. I suspect you don't approve of Swift's training program.

[BigDiesel]

Not really. I am showing some respect for the great loss of some family. The death of a driver, perhaps a father and a husband.

I don't mean to knock you about your thoughts on this Big Diesel. I suspect you don't approve of Swift's training program.

What training program ?????

You must still be under the Swift trainee ether......

[cdswans]

I'm sure it's just a matter of time before Big D will illuminate the big picture.

In the meantime . . it was a marked Swift trailer full of groceries, meaning it was a COSTCO reefer load, picked up in Sumner, exactly 40 miles from the accident. The Volvo means it was a probably a 2 axle trailer. There is no such thing as a light COSTCO load so I'd imagine the truck scaled pretty close to gross, loaded high and heavy.

The place where they crashed is the middle of three broad, left, NEGATIVELY SLOPED CURVES* on a downgrade. It is the scene of a lot of panic breaking by all types of drivers because not everyone knows they're going too fast for the curves until they're well into them. I've seen plenty of fendabendas, a few wrecks and a couple of roll-overs . . a log truck and a . . a . . a . . A medium size van carrier whose name escapes me.

The hour and absence of any other vehicles involved suggests traffic was light. That stretch of I-5 is posted 55 for everyone. And it was raining . . or at least the road was wet.

Now, because Big D purports to know what the heck he's talking about, he'd go on to tell you that any number of factors, alone or combined, could have contributed to this accident, not the least of which was the inexperienced driver. He would also tell you that no fewer than 150 Swift trucks pass through there, everyday in each direction, in all kinds of weather and a lot of those trucks are being driven by students.

108000 trips (anual) on that stretch of road alone, one wreck and Swift has a rotten training program? HMMMMMMmmmmmmmmm can you see the big picture? Between us friends, if the student has made it through 3 and a half weeks it is not unreasonable to expect the WA state CDL licensed driver to be able to handle some driving on his own. In fact, if he wasn't capable at that point then he shouldn't have been on the truck at all.

4+ years, 500,000+ miles, 1 struck deer, 1 struck telephone pole (in a parking lot . . I was being attacked by bees, a scraped trailer (witnesses) or two (no witnesses), 1 CA scale fine, 1 OR permit fine and no others. Swift trained and still learning.

*instead of banking up, as would a well built road, they bank down

[ronjon619]

I smell a nice fight coming...........

[BigDiesel]

I'm sure it's just a matter of time before Big D will illuminate the big picture.

In the meantime . . it was a marked Swift trailer full of groceries, meaning it was a COSTCO reefer load, picked up in Sumner, exactly 40 miles from the accident. The Volvo means it was a probably a 2 axle trailer. There is no such thing as a light COSTCO load so I'd imagine the truck scaled pretty close to gross, loaded high and heavy.

The place where they crashed is the middle of three broad, left, NEGATIVELY SLOPED CURVES* on a downgrade. It is the scene of a lot of panic breaking by all types of drivers because not everyone knows they're going too fast for the curves until they're well into them. I've seen plenty of fendabendas, a few wrecks and a couple of roll-overs . . a log truck and a . . a . . a . . A medium size van carrier whose name escapes me.

The hour and absence of any other vehicles involved suggests traffic was light. That stretch of I-5 is posted 55 for everyone. And it was raining . . or at least the road was wet.

Now, because Big D purports to know what the heck he's talking about, he'd go on to tell you that any number of factors, alone or combined, could have contributed to this accident, not the least of which was the inexperienced driver. He would also tell you that no fewer than 150 Swift trucks pass through there, everyday in each direction, in all kinds of weather and a lot of those trucks are being driven by students.

108000 trips (anual) on that stretch of road alone, one wreck and Swift has a rotten training program? HMMMMMMmmmmmmmmm can you see the big picture? Between us friends, if the student has made it through 3 and a half weeks it is not unreasonable to expect the WA state CDL licensed driver to be able to handle some driving on his own. In fact, if he wasn't capable at that point then he shouldn't have been on the truck at all.

4+ years, 500,000+ miles, 1 struck deer, 1 struck telephone pole (in a parking lot . . I was being attacked by bees, a scraped trailer (witnesses) or two (no witnesses), 1 CA scale fine, 1 OR permit fine and no others. Swift trained and still learning.

*instead of banking up, as would a well built road, they bank down

Figures a swifty would get their feelings hurt........

Ok 4 year supertrucker..... explain this to the audience at home.... Why was the so called " Trainer " in the bunk/sleeper, whilst the trainee was at the helm ????

Now think hard and no cheating with your "How to respond to Professional Drivers who think Swift's training program is a joke" pamphlet......

[Orangetxguy]

Figures a swifty would get their feelings hurt........

Ok 4 year supertrucker..... explain this to the audience at home.... Why was the so called " Trainer " in the bunk/sleeper, whilst the trainee was at the helm ????

Now think hard and no cheating with your "How to respond to Professional Drivers who think Swift's training program is a joke" pamphlet......

Originally Posted by cdswans
I'm sure it's just a matter of time before Big D will illuminate the big picture.

In the meantime . . it was a marked Swift trailer full of groceries, meaning it was a COSTCO reefer load, picked up in Sumner, exactly 40 miles from the accident. The Volvo means it was a probably a 2 axle trailer. There is no such thing as a light COSTCO load so I'd imagine the truck scaled pretty close to gross, loaded high and heavy.

The place where they crashed is the middle of three broad, left, NEGATIVELY SLOPED CURVES* on a downgrade. It is the scene of a lot of panic breaking by all types of drivers because not everyone knows they're going too fast for the curves until they're well into them. I've seen plenty of fendabendas, a few wrecks and a couple of roll-overs . . a log truck and a . . a . . a . . A medium size van carrier whose name escapes me.

The hour and absence of any other vehicles involved suggests traffic was light. That stretch of I-5 is posted 55 for everyone. And it was raining . . or at least the road was wet.

Now, because Big D purports to know what the heck he's talking about, he'd go on to tell you that any number of factors, alone or combined, could have contributed to this accident, not the least of which was the inexperienced driver. He would also tell you that no fewer than 150 Swift trucks pass through there, everyday in each direction, in all kinds of weather and a lot of those trucks are being driven by students.

108000 trips (anual) on that stretch of road alone, one wreck and Swift has a rotten training program? HMMMMMMmmmmmmmmm can you see the big picture? Between us friends, if the student has made it through 3 and a half weeks it is not unreasonable to expect the WA state CDL licensed driver to be able to handle some driving on his own. In fact, if he wasn't capable at that point then he shouldn't have been on the truck at all.

4+ years, 500,000+ miles, 1 struck deer, 1 struck telephone pole (in a parking lot . . I was being attacked by bees, a scraped trailer (witnesses) or two (no witnesses), 1 CA scale fine, 1 OR permit fine and no others. Swift trained and still learning.

*instead of banking up, as would a well built road, they bank down

LOL...CD....Lot's to be picked apart on your statement. But I won't. Now....As for what I have to say...don't let my location fool you. I know that particular stretch of road very well. In fact..I think it is safe to say I have over 500,000 safe driving miles between Nisqually and the 101 interchange. Hell....I have over 3 million safe driving miles between Marysville and Chehalis.

Big D is right, as far as Swift and the "Trainer" that was on the truck with this driver is concerned. The trainer should have been sitting in the trainer seat, not in the bunk. Swifts training program tends to leave a lot to be desired, when trainers are sitting in the bunk..or worse..sleeping in the bunk, when they should be out in the seat. This particular trainer didn't make much $$$ this week, doing his "Training Team" stunt, since the truck was wrecked.

From the news article;

"Trooper Brandy Kessler says the driver, who had been on the job about a month was killed.
According to Kessler, 49-year-old Cheikh Fay of Renton had only about three and a half weeks of driver training."

I too have seen lots of accidents through that stretch of I-5. Very few of the drivers were "Paniced" before the accidents. All were inattentive.

Inexperience got this particular driver killed. He is not the first though. He is not the first inexperienced Swift driver to die while the trainer was in the bunk either I am sure.

I feel bad for the man's family. They don't deserve what they are experiencing.

Oh yeah...I saw no less than 25 Swift Volvos pulling 4-axle vans last week. All those Volvos were themselves 4-axle trucks.

Oh yeah...I've not scraped a power pole, killed a deer, or had any other little scrapes. I did however spend the night in a Holiday Inn this week!

[cdswans]

Figures a swifty would get their feelings hurt........

Ok 4 year supertrucker..... explain this to the audience at home.... Why was the so called " Trainer " in the bunk/sleeper, whilst the trainee was at the helm ????

Now think hard and no cheating with your "How to respond to Professional Drivers who think Swift's training program is a joke" pamphlet......

. . or the facts straight. And that's a 4 year rookie, by the way.

. . the trainer required some sleep and all good trainers know sleep is best accomplished in the sleeper.

. . OK. But can I use the "How to respond to the flagrant ignoramous . . " pamphlet instead?

Swift operates lots of trucks and employs lots of Drivers. Sooner or later, anyone in this business will observe a Swift Driver doing something stupid, dangerous and/or potentially fatal. It's a numbers game. If two Drivers witness same, they will fire up the truckernuts and holler on the CB. Now everybody's a witness and they'll swear to it! As would be the case in any large organization, some morons do slip through the cracks. I hope, you hope, we all hope they will find their way out of the business without taking anyone else with them.

Swift has a very respectable training program which has placed thousands of Drivers behind the wheel at hundreds of trucking companies. Other companies like hiring Swift Drivers because of the depth of the training, the work ethic and the diverse freight base Swift Drivers are exposed to.

Run along now . . Oh! Start another thread. Ask people to offer their definition of a "Professional Driver". I'd be curious to learn if a neophyte windbag such as yourself would set some kind of standard.

[BIG JEEP on 44's]

LOL...CD....Lot's to be picked apart on your statement. But I won't. Now....As for what I have to say...don't let my location fool you. I know that particular stretch of road very well. In fact..I think it is safe to say I have over 500,000 safe driving miles between Nisqually and the 101 interchange. Hell....I have over 3 million safe driving miles between Marysville and Chehalis.

Big D is right, as far as Swift and the "Trainer" that was on the truck with this driver is concerned. The trainer should have been sitting in the trainer seat, not in the bunk. Swifts training program tends to leave a lot to be desired, when trainers are sitting in the bunk..or worse..sleeping in the bunk, when they should be out in the seat. This particular trainer didn't make much $$$ this week, doing his "Training Team" stunt, since the truck was wrecked.

From the news article;

I too have seen lots of accidents through that stretch of I-5. Very few of the drivers were "Paniced" before the accidents. All were inattentive.

Inexperience got this particular driver killed. He is not the first though. He is not the first inexperienced Swift driver to die while the trainer was in the bunk either I am sure.

I feel bad for the man's family. They don't deserve what they are experiencing.

Oh yeah...I saw no less than 25 Swift Volvos pulling 4-axle vans last week. All those Volvos were themselves 4-axle trucks.

Oh yeah...I've not scraped a power pole, killed a deer, or had any other little scrapes. I did however spend the night in a Holiday Inn this week!

Well Deer kill themselves when darting out infront of moving semi of 55-65 mph ...and either you're extremely lucky with wild life for all the years you claim to have driven or maybe you CDL is internet issued ? Because if you drive on roads with heavy wildlife population you will eventually hit a deer in a semi...And never having any little "scrapes" would mean you've never so much as curbed a tire...LOL

[cdswans]

any number of factors, alone or combined, could have contributed to this accident, not the least of which was the inexperienced driver.

I made no attempt to diminish the significance of the inexperienced Driver. The news story has a few gaps, understandably and my aim was to help fill them. I have first hand experience with that freight on that road and under those conditions, with and without a trainer.

That inexperienced Driver had a heavy, top heavy load at night through tricky turns on a wet road. My guess is he found himself going too fast for conditions and either overeacted or reacted too little or too late. Should he have been allowed to drive it while the trainer slept? How should I know? Had he been able to impress the trainer up to that point or was the trainer just lazy? Who knows? When did the poop hit the fan and would the trainer have been able to intervene had he been in the seat? Who knows?

Not all inexperienced Drivers wreck. I didn't. Most don't. A blanket indictment of Swift's training methods is ludicrous. Every major fleet trains the exact same way and enjoy the same rate of success that Swift has. Do a lot of Drivers have negative impressions of Swift training? They sure do. A lot of Drivers have negative opinions about every aspect of the company. I may just fall over dead if I ever hear someone pay Swift a compliment.

As far as the equipment goes, you can have an 80000 lb tractor uprated to 94000 by paying a little extra dough at registration and there are probably plenty of 94000 rated Volvos. My first truck was a 94000 lb Freightliner. I could legally pull most 3 axles, an occasional (not fully loaded) 4 axle and Rocky Mountain doubles. I don't think Swift has any 4 axle Volvos but I could be wrong. My earlier scenario is a most likely scenario scenario. Again, I could be wrong but that is so rare . .




.

[Orangetxguy]

Well Deer kill themselves when darting out infront of moving semi of 55-65 mph ...and either you're extremely lucky with wild life for all the years you claim to have driven or maybe you CDL is internet issued ? Because if you drive on roads with heavy wildlife population you will eventually hit a deer in a semi...And never having any little "scrapes" would mean you've never so much as curbed a tire...LOL

Well Big Jeep. I have never killed a deer with a truck or a 4-wheeler. I haven't shot one since October of 1983. There are plenty of deer and elk along I-90 on Snoqualmie Pass. Lot's of deer through out Washington State, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Colorado, Wyoming...and several more for that matter.

Not hitting things is fairly easy to do. You simply pay attention to what you are doing. Now...I have curbed a tire (1984 if memory serves me right). I didn't however blow out a tire (or tires) and bend up the rims. But curbing a tire and scraping a trailer against a fixed object or another vehicle...are two different subjects. "Get Out And Look" has been around a long time.


Now....I have been involved in an accident. BUT...that particular "Peckerhead" is still in jail (currently Lompoc, CA), and has several more years to go, before he walks out. The accident (in 1997), was re-classified as a criminal act and I was listed as the victim. It has never shown on my MVR as an accident. When they move "Peckerhead" from one prison to another, I am informed, as I will be when he is released.

As for this subject..the Swift trainer should have been awake and in the right seat where he belonged. I-5 through Olympia is just not that bad. It never has been (I have driven that stretch of road in all types of conditions). If the trainee was speeding, it was the trainer's job to get him slowed down.

If the WSP issues a public report on this accident (the one BD posted about?), they will say in that report what the traffic cameras showed. If the truck was cut-off, the WSP will use all due deligence to chase down the offending vehicle. They are very good at their job. You would be amazed at how good those cameras are....(I was). I was also very thankful for the cameras and the WSP performance. The cameras supported my written statement about the events of the accident I was in.

Now...If you want to say something about that(my accident), remember this. I haul Hazardous Material. I have hauled hazardous material since 1979. In the years since I started driving, I have moved from the "Ride to the Right" philosophy, to the "Stay in the lane and ride it out" philosophy. It is far far safer to kill one, than it is to kill tens, hundreds...or thousands. Maintaining control of the truck, and keeping it up right and on the road, is safer than driving through an apartment complex, a motel, a mall...or a home. From the corporate stand point...it is also cheaper to "Stay in the lane". There are some chemicals out there on the road, that you simply do not want spilled. Wild manuvers at speed, produces bad results.